Lady's Class

Author: Yanzhi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-05-01
Features: The earliest lady might appear in the first poem of the Classic of Poetry, "The Swallow." A line like "Fair and gentle is the lady, the gentleman's delight" resonates even today, two thousand years later. Originally, a lady was merely "gentle" in the sense of "virtuous," and the meaning of a lady was simply a simple "good" word, making her a good partner for men. Over the millennia of Chinese history, countless constraints have been placed upon the lady, including smiling without showing teeth, not stepping outside the main gate, and having bound feet, and so on and so on. Of course, compared to modern ladies, the happiest were the ladies of the past, who did not have to wear high heels. This book is written by Yanzhi, a writer known as the "Cao Xueqin of the mainland." The lady in the book is one who inherits traditional virtues while retaining the charm of modern women, a new kind of woman in the context of a new civilization, new culture, and a new era. The lady is like a lotus emerging from the water—gentle, pure, elegant, and delicate. Subtle yet passionate, rational yet romantic. As a woman, one naturally pays attention to charm, and "femininity" is an elegant feeling that distinguishes women from men, from the inside out, especially in the eyes, which can convey the deepest tenderness. Often, men admire such gentle women.